I Am Alive

Hello all! It's me! I am alive and well, though you wouldn't know it from my lack of blogging. Since my last entry, the summer has cranked up the heat (which I love) and lots of new developments have taken place. First off, I hiked Mt. Fuji for the 3rd time on 12 July. It was great, but I think 3 truly is the 'magic number' and I don't need to do it again. Then, the next day, I found out I was passed over for promotion. Fuckers! Who needs 'em anyway! So I've been comtemplating my life's plans & goals quite a bit as of late. Also, I've attended several fireworks celebrations. You could literally attend dozens of them throughout various areas of Japan in the summertime. I would say millions of dollars (yen equivalent) are spent on explosives by this country every year!















I bought a Nintendo DS Lite along with four games -- Brain Age, Super Mario Brothers, Tetris, and Sudoku. Both Akemi and I are addicted! It's a great system. I highly recommend it; especially for adults who are not of the usual gaming type. Many of the games are geared toward a more mature crowd.

I finished reading "Scar Tissue", the autobiography by Red Hot Chili Pepper frontman Anthony Kiedis. Now, I'm not a huge Chili Pepper fan (not like Akemi anyway), but I do love autobiographies, especially of lives spent on the edge. And his book is certainly a firsthand account of a descent into a drug-soaked, selfish, decadent hell. I enjoyed it. Now I'm in the middle of Eric Schlosser's "Fast Food Nation", a great account of the rise to power of the fast food industry and all the evils associated with it. It's such a detailed account -- everything from the life of Ray Kroc to what makes McD's french fries taste good. I'd say I've definitely cut down tremendously on the amount of fast food I consume during the past year, and this book makes me not want to touch it ever again. Anyway, a good read, and now I'm ready to see the movie of the same title which is due to be released some time in the next year.

Akemi and I will go to the island of Kyshu at the end of August, so I'll post pictures from our trip after that. We're looking forward to more travels this Fall, so I'll keep you informed! Peace out, mo' fo's!